


Come Down and Waste Away with Me

by LadyKnightOfHollyrose



Series: Everlong [3]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - 1990s, Drabble, Established Relationship, M/M, music festivals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-01
Updated: 2014-06-01
Packaged: 2018-02-03 01:54:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1726829
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyKnightOfHollyrose/pseuds/LadyKnightOfHollyrose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At the time, his idea had seemed like a stroke of <i>genius</i>.</p>
<p>Struck by inspiration (that he had thought at the time to be of the <i>divine</i> variety), Gilbert had spent a lot of time trying to get everything absolutely perfect with admittedly his limited resources.</p>
<p>Now that he’s actually here with Arthur, the blond shifting impatiently as he paws at the scarf tied around his eyes (Gilbert has to bat his hand away <i>again</i>) he’s beginning to doubt himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Come Down and Waste Away with Me

**Author's Note:**

> For [this drabble prompt meme](http://hollyroses-vault.tumblr.com/post/84950428556/send-me-a-number-and-two-characters-get-a-drabble) for the prompt 'Under the Rain', requested by [mieudiary](http://mieudiary.tumblr.com/).

At the time, his idea had seemed like a stroke of _genius_.

Struck by inspiration (that he had thought at the time to be of the _divine_ variety), Gilbert had spent a lot of time trying to get everything absolutely perfect with admittedly his limited resources.

Now that he’s actually here with Arthur, the blond shifting impatiently as he paws at the scarf tied around his eyes (Gilbert has to bat his hand away _again_ ) he’s beginning to doubt himself.

"We’ve been stood still for a while so I’m going to take a _wild_ guess and say we’re here. Now stop dithering and let me take the damn blindfold off.”

Gilbert huffs. “And here I was trying to do something nice for you.”

Still, he does tug the knot holding the scarf in place loose and finally lets it slip from Arthur’s face.

He can’t help but chew the inside of his cheek in anticipation as Arthur takes in the sight before him in silence.

There’s an old, faded picnic blanket spread out on the grass of the lawn, more so that they don’t need to worry about any stray twigs digging into them when they settle than out of concern for the state of their clothes. It’s held down by a ~~basket~~ hamper full of a variety of snacks and a couple of bottles of beer he’d managed to sneakily buy from the off licence. Arguably the most important component of his set up - his trusty radio - sits in the shade of the old oak tree, its power cord trailing from its back up into the house through an open window.

Arthur still hasn’t said anything, his mouth slightly slack as he puts together fragments of conversations they’ve had over the last couple of months.

Unable to take the silence when he’s already feeling so antsy, Gilbert feels the urge to explain himself anyway. “Couldn’t take you to the _festival_ , so I figured the next best thing was to bring the festival to _you_ , right?”

More silence.

Maybe this is a bad idea after all; maybe it’s just rubbing in the fact that they hadn’t had the cash to spare for tickets _and_ travel, that they’re _stuck_ here and aren’t likely to get out until after they’re done with their educations.

He’s just about to laugh it off (somehow) when, _finally_ , Arthur-

"You’re ridiculous."

Gilbert glances at Arthur from the corner of his eye, trying to gauge the tone of Arthur’s voice…

He needn’t have worried. Arthur takes a fist full of his t-shirt and pulls him into a long, thorough kiss.

Between his thoughts of ‘ _absolute genius, well done me_ ’, he also has enough wits to be distantly grateful that his father’s out on a business trip and Ludwig’s staying over with Kiku for the weekend.

They flick the radio on, Beck being about half way through playing Don’t Look Back, as they settle onto the blanket with a pile of NME magazines, a veritable mountain of Freddos and one of the beers between them.

The sun beats down on them for most of the afternoon as they make a respectable dent in the crisps and chocolate and sing along to the songs they know; while it’s a far cry from the electric atmosphere of a festival, there’s something to be said for the freedom of being in your own back garden.

He doubts Arthur would be absently running his fingers through Gilbert’s hair as he explains ‘who the fuck’ the Foo Fighters are and why he’s hoping they’ll get to hear them despite the bend not being on the main stage (“Come on, it’s the first time Grohl’s been back since _Nirvana_ , honestly.”) if they were actually at the festival in any case.

Still, Gilbert’s forced to lift his head from where it has been resting on Arthur’s stomach just as Green Day launch into F.O.D. when he feels a couple of drops of moisture trickle down through the tree’s canopy to land squarely on the bridge of his nose.

It’s all the warning they get before the heavens open.

Arthur scrambles to his feet, dumping Gilbert onto his behind in the process. He’s cursing up a storm of his very own, and if it not for the very peril his precious radio is facing he’s sure he’d feel more amused.

Scooping up the radio and shielding it with his body as best he can, Gilbert sprints across the lawn to shove it into the safety of the house through the window, leaving Arthur to collect his magazines.

By the time both have been rescued, the two of them are completely drenched and they’re almost at the end of Green Day’s set.

They look at each other for a moment, daring the other to suggest retreating to the warmth of the house. The rain is soaking through the thin layers of their clothes, plastering their hair to their faces. Arthur looks like a particularly disgruntled puppy and Gilbert can’t help the sputter of laughter the sight startles out of him.

Arthur keeps up his pout for a grand total of five seconds before rolling his eyes and reaching indoors to turn the volume of the radio up so that they can hear the Smashing Pumpkins even over the constant pitter patter.

They make the executive (mutual but silent) decision to stay outside for the remainder of the headlining band’s set since they certainly wouldn’t run at the first sign of rain if they were actually  _seeing_ them live.

It means that they spend the _next_ two days of the festival listening from under duvets filched from his and Ludwig’s beds with their hands wrapped around mugs of hot chocolate instead of passing the second bottle of beer between them as planned. Still, the snuggling that would later be denied if questioned is definitely worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> Soo I was originally going to base this on [Reading Festival in 1995](http://www.readingfestival.com/sites/www.readingfestival.com/files/images/history/poster/1995%20.jpg) but upon looking into it a bit more realised that it was actually one British Summer that was _actually really hot wtf_ D: (I can't remember it personally since I was about 4 at the time, but still, just when you can think of typical British weather being something reliable...) And I figured although 92 was famously rainy it was a liiiittle too far back.  
> Anyway, let's just pretend that this was for some other music festival around that time with similar bands and sweep it under the 'creative licence' rug'. [Apparently tickets for the full weekend were £60 that year](http://www.fatreg.com/timeline.html), which would have been expensive for the boys. If only they were that price now ;w; For reference, have some [Foo Fighters](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxD4Tl8-Axk), [Smashing Pumkins](https://archive.org/details/tsp1995-08-25.flac16#) and [Green Day](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cI32TOhllLw) from Reading 95. The Foo Fighters' set is especially good cause they keep stopping to check that no one's hurt =3= Also listen right from the beginning ^^b
> 
> Oh, something else that I stumbled upon between my research/brooding that I can't go this year was this quote from [NME](http://www.nme.com/reviews/foo-fighters/12207#82tTQ9L6uZgjbmiy.99) about Dave Grohl XD  
> ' _And yes: it seems that Dave has finally learned that **‘[Everlong](http://youtu.be/-UEBFiRt8eo)’** sounds much better as it was originally intended, with the whole band at full pelt, rather than him wanking it out alone as he has done for years._ ' Good old British journalism :D 
> 
> [Also for those of you unaware of Freddos](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freddo)...  
> Hope you guys enjoyed this! ^^


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